BrotherScanNCut DX SDX230Di Electronic Cutting Machine

Love the Cutter! Here are two things you need to do first. FIRST: Update the machine. I could not get it to connect to my network and, after a couple hours, I figured it out. SECOND: Use the RED piece of test paper they give you and the marker attachment to make a big circle on the paper. Check to make sure the width of the line is consistent around the whole circle. If it is not a consistent width then you have a cut surface that is out of level. Immediately box the machine back up and return it. I just wanted to mention these things first so people would be more likely to see them. My machine arrived Factory Sealed in a undamaged box. I am very detail oriented so I read through the instructions and watched online videos before doing anything. So I am ready to set up the machine itself and can not get the machine to connect to my network.I searched all over the internet and could not find a solution.I tried to contact customer support but it was a weekend and they are only available 9 to 5 Monday to Friday. This is a big miss on there part for me.I think more people are doing their crafting on the weekends and that is when they need help, not 2 days later.Just on a whim I updated the machine and it connected to my network with no issues.Updating involved getting the update from the Brother web site, loading it on a USB and inserting it into the machine. Now that is done I am ready to cut.I laid out an American flag and cut it on adhesive vinyl with the machine set to "AUTO" which automatically sets the blade height and is the recommended setting and a nice feature as well. It cut fast and the cuts were nice and clean, or so I thought. When I tried to remove it I found it did not cut all the way through on the right front corner. I adjusted the blade from "AUTO" to a setting of 1 which cuts deeper.This time it cut all the way through but also cut through the backing on the left front corner area. My husband took one look and knew something was out of whack.I then used the Red test paper they include and made a big circle on it with the marker attachment and sure enough the width of the line got thinner on the right front corner. The marker was not making as much contact with the paper in that area. So I confirmed something was out of alignment.I look for anything obviously out of place or some way to manually adjust it but there was nothing I could see.At this point it had been a trying day and I was almost at tears so I stopped for the night since I could not contact customer support until Monday.So Monday I contact customer support and describe the issue and ask if there is any adjustment I can make to the machine.They hear nothing I say and have me do all these tests that have nothing to do with my issue.I played their silly game and when nothing worked their solution was for ME to take the machine to a certified service center so they could inspect and repair it. I thought to myself, you have to be kidding me.I could not believe the customer service I was getting from Brother. As an established, well known and respected company, I expected more from them.I let them know I would be returning the machine to Amazon. I love that Amazon is easy to deal with as opposed to many manufacturers.My replacement machine arrived the next day and I returned the original machine.The machine had sat here in the box for a month before I even opened it as I had PTSD from my first experience.I open it up last night to give it another shot, not knowing what to expect.I updated the machine immediately and it connected with no issues.I installed the marker attachment and this time my test circle was a consistent width.Next I installed the blade and cut my American flag again starting with the "AUTO" setting and it cut perfect.The cuts were cleaner and it weeded so much easier.I had fun, it was not fun with the original machine, not fun at all.Do the circle test and if it fails return it.Even after all of this, I would buy this machine again and I would recommend it to you too. 5 STARS

The new machine is absolutely wonderful if you want to work with fabric e.g. patchwork and small sewing projects like accessories and doll clothes. You do need to buy the new rotary blade that cuts just as your big rotary blade for quilting. All three major brands now have rotary blades - Brother DX models, Cricut Maker and Silhouette Cameo 4 all can do it with varying results. Rotary blade cuts the fabric without dragging it over the mat, so it is so much more precise and does not distort the fabric and you do not need any kind of bond or starch or stabilizer for the fabric. It is kind of hard to find the blade at the moment, but I managed to catch it in stock. It is wonderful. You can even do fussy cutting because of the scan feature. You can also mark the fabricThe new machine finally can scan the whole 12 by 24 mat, in the past only dealer sold models were capable of doing that, and those were way too expensive. You can put large piece of fabric on the mat, scan it and cut everything at once and you will know where your cuts will be exactly. The machine is loaded with a whole bunch of quilt block patterns, and also with general kind of patterns and Disney patterns, too. You can work completely without using a computer, but you also can work with from your computer for even more possibilities, where you can download free patterns with instructions on how to do the projects. The machine can read svg files that can be purchased or exported from other software, as well as .pes files that are embroidery files from brother embroidery machine, but I didn't try that. It should be so nice to have the machine cut exact pieces for your applique instead of having them to trim from the fabric stuck to the embroidery hoop.I love the autoblade, it checks the material thickness automatically and adjusts to make the perfect cut, but you can also customize it in the settings for trickier materials. It is quiet. It is faster with autoblade, but rather slow when cutting with rotary blade because it takes time to adjust the angle of the cut every time it needs to turn.The manual is available online on Brother's website, as well as the list of all designs included and instructions on all optional kits and features that you can buy separately. There are also multiple online tutorials and videos to check out. One of the things I do not like about Brother machines is that add-ons are expensive, and I am not a big fan of their mats - they lose stickiness very fast and they need to be cleaned and covered with new adhesive to make them sticky again, which is annoying. I use Zig repositionable glue and it seems to work ok, there are lots of tutorials on how to do it because of how often it happens. But add-ons are pretty fun and give tons of new possibilities - like embossing, calligraphy with special chisel tip markers, that rotary blade I was talking about in the beginning, vinyl cutting kit for being able to cut off the roll and tile your decals, foil, and rhinestones, and maybe more.It is a really powerful machine and it can do a lot if you take care to learn and try

There's not much at all I don't like about this scan & cut. Best part is how it cuts out material for my embroidery machine for quilting.

I’m still learning.

Love it. Brothers products are online only for the most part. Their website needs a lot of work for customers.It’s a grip of cash to get started. So much fun after that.